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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

(1) What industry types make up the economic foundation of a state or metropolitan area? Please see the EDEPS industry trends data from the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW), and the economic "stress test" report in the applied research section. Are the workforce development training resources and agencies in the selected state or metropolitan area capable of supporting growth of existing or new businesses? See the EDEPS structured training completions data by program of study, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics' labor force characteristics.

(2) How do states and areas differ about the cost factors of doing business and/or quality of life indicators? Please see the EDEPS industry trends and occupational wage trends and census data quality of life indicators.

(3) What are the market trends based on demographic data and economic forecasts? See the EDEPS population profiles and trends , and The Conference Board's short-term economic forecasts.

(4) How many experienced workers by occupation and industry are located in a state or local area; and are training institutions able to meet current and future labor requirements of businesses? Please see the EDEPS Industry Staffing Patterns: Occupations within an Industry, industry trends data, and the OnTheMap graphics, plus the occupational supply/demand indicators and training completions data from structured training programs of study.

(5) What are the prevailing wages and wage trends by industry and occupation nationally and by state and locally among competing areas? See the EDEPS occupational wage trends and industry trends.

(6) What will be the impact on current resources (that is, employment, training facilities, local labor supply, taxes, and infrastructure), if a specific type of industry relocates to, or expands in, a metropolitan area? Please see the EDEPS Bulletins section for a discussion about ex ante impact evaluations that utilize input/output analyses.

(7). What are the Units of Analysis? Units of Analysis are groups (clusters) of related occupations and structured training programs that approximate occupational labor markets. The grouping of occupations and their job openings and related training programs and their graduates (completers) allows demand data to be compared to institutional supply information from education and training programs. The relationship between training programs and occupations is not always a one-to-one relationship. A single training program can be related to more than one occupation; and, conversely, entrants into an occupation may come from several training programs. Units of analysis also have geographic characteristics. The appropriate unit of analysis may be national, because of high geographic mobility (e.g., for baccalaureate and above-related occupations), or state and local labor market areas for sub-baccalaureate occupations with low geographic rates of mobility. There are three different types of clusters in the national units of analysis. These cluster types are identified by the letter A, B, or C at the end of the unit code number:

--> A clusters are those that are most valid for supply/demand analysis, as the occupations for the most part require formal educational training in one of the related programs.
--> B clusters are those where the related programs train for the occupations in the cluster, but formal educational preparation is not required for entry into the occupations, and may not be the most common source of potential supply.
--> C clusters contain only programs alone, or occupations alone, and do not have any supply/demand matching.